Adults over 21 will be allowed to possess and use up to one ounce of marijuana recreationally, and can grow up to six plants in their homes. Users who don’t want to grow their own will be able to visit specially regulated marijuana stores, from which the state will collect tax revenue.

““The victories in Colorado and Washington are of historic significance not just for Americans but for all countries debating the future of marijuana prohibition in their own countries,” commented Ethan Nadelmann, executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, in a statement.

“This is now a mainstream issue, with citizens more or less divided on the issue but increasingly inclined to favor responsible regulation of marijuana over costly and ineffective prohibitionist policies.”

There was at least one other, less overtly dramatic victory for the pro-pot set on Tuesday.

Arkansas voters, perhaps unsurprisingly, struck down a proposal to legalize both the growth and the usage of medical marijuana. Conservatives, according to KAIT8 news, claimed that the measure didn’t make it clear that medicinal users might be subject to federal penalties — a persistent bug-a-boo for marijuana supporters.

Finally, in Tuesday’s marijuana drama, there was Montana, where Initiative 124 sought to impose more restrictions on the use of medical marijuana, already legal there, according to Votesmart.org.

That regulatory measure appears poised to pass.

More challenges exist for aspirant marijuana users in Colorado and Washington, however.

But the voters have spoken, and on the whole, Tuesday appears to have come down as a victory for advocates of legalized marijuana in the United States.

One thing is absolutely certain: The rest of the nation will be watching Colorado and Oregon as they sort out the intricacies of both legalizing and taxing a formerly controlled — and highly symbolic — substance.

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